Tuvalu in 1998

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Area: 25.6 sq km (9.9 sq mi)

Population (1998 est.): 10,400

Capital: Government offices in Vaiaku, Fongafale islet, of Funafuti atoll

Elections for Parliament took place in March 1998. To select 12 legislators, the country’s 4,000 voters were faced with 36 candidates, all male. In the election former prime minister Kamuta Latasi lost his seat, and Prime Minister Bikenibeu Paeniu was easily returned along with 10 supporting MPs.

The 1998 budget of $A 13,600,000 was allocated as follows: $A 3,720,000 for development, $A 3,550,000 for reinvestment in the country’s trust fund, and the balance for operational expenses ($A 1 = U.S. $0.61). Tuvalu continued its attempts to seek innovative sources of revenue, such as the practice of selling passports (U.S. $11,000 per person and $27,000 per family), despite the possibility that some countries would not recognize the passports for entry purposes. The government also sold the licensing of its Internet domain name, ".tv," to a Canadian company for U.S. $50 million plus a share of future profits.